The Conservatives have grossly mismanaged the transition to the new Social Security Tribunal, leaving thousands of Canadians waiting months—without income—before eventually receiving a hearing.

“The Conservatives took an appeal system that was working and completely broke it,” said Jinny Sims (Newton–North Delta), NDP critic for Employment and Social Development. “They had more than a year to prepare for this transition, yet Conservative mismanagement means we’ve ended up with a Tribunal that isn’t fully staffed and has hardly held any hearings.”

Statistics released today reveal that the Income Security Section heard only 178 appeals in its first year. At this pace, it will take 9.5 years to hear all current income security appeals—without taking into account any new appeals.

“There are more than 9,000 Canadians waiting for a CPP or OAS hearing,” added Sadia Groguhé (Saint-Lambert), NDP deputy critic for Employment and Social Development. “These are disabled Canadians and seniors who have little or no income and need to pay bills and buy groceries. They can’t wait years for this government to get its act together.”

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